Out of the Blue: An Understanding of Perspectives and an Assessment of Behavior Change of Whale Shark Tourism Stakeholders in Oslob, Cebu

Batino, L.F., & Concepcion P.A. (2016). Out of the Blue: An Understanding of Perspectives and an Assessment of Behavior Change of Whale Shark Tourism Stakeholders in Oslob, Cebu.

Unpublished Undergraduate Thesis, University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication.

This study examined the concepts, information, and messages shared, circulated, and produced by the stakeholders about the whale shark tourism in Oslob, Cebu and their perceived sustainability of this activity to identify their level of behavior change. Utilizing Kincaid’s Convergence Theory of Communication and the Steps to Behavior Change Model, it provides a description of how each stakeholder, based on their preference, statements, and perspectives communicate their concerns to one another, and how they arrive to an understanding that operates on mutual agreement without having to alter their stances.

The study is highly qualitative in nature. It provides an overview of the communication process amongst groups, particularly those with conflicting stances. The affected stakeholders in the whale shark watching activity were classified into three main groups according to shared views, perceptions and stances on the initiative— the local stakeholders, the immersed stakeholders, and the external stakeholders. The stakeholders all emulate an open stance in receiving information and messages which concern the whale shark watching activity with the end goal of improving it while protecting the interests of all parties involved. When taken independently, the concept of sustainable development may be described as foreign to the local stakeholders, but the necessity for the activity to be operational in the long-run draws out an unconscious movement towards it.